The ABI has issued a circular letter to promote the adoption by its members of measures in favor of families with variable rate mortgages without a cap, in order to mitigate the impact of the increase in interest rates on the amount of the installments.
Such measures could consist of:
- in extending the amortization plan for loans for the purchase of a first home;
- in expanding the number of beneficiaries of the renegotiation of mortgage loan contracts, introduced by article 1, paragraph 322, of Law no. 29 (for example, by admitting to the measure also subjects with ISEE income or with mortgages of a higher amount than those envisaged by law);
- in the further diffusion of knowledge among its customers of the possibility of using the Solidarity Fund for mortgages for the purchase of the first home (the so-called Gasparrini Fund), in order to suspend - upon the occurrence of specific events - the payment of loan installments.
The aforementioned measures will be implemented upon request and in agreement with those who have chosen to take out a variable-rate mortgage, without new charges, according to the operational possibilities of the individual banks and compatibly with the limits imposed by European regulations and the personal data conditions of the subjects beneficiaries.
Banks and financial intermediaries that intend to take part in the initiative communicate it: (i) to customers through their websites and/or by posting specific notices in the branches (ii) to the ABI - which will publish the list of subjects members on their website (www.abi.it).
Each bank or financial intermediary adhering to the initiative will be able to offer its customers improved conditions compared to those indicated above, or adopt further measures to deal with the impacts of the increase in interest rates on variable-rate mortgages.
The ABI emphasizes in the circular that given the importance of the initiative, broad and timely acceptance by the banking and financial world is essential.